1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to low-caloric processed meat products and more particularly, to an improvement in such meat products in which a specifically treated KONJAC MANNAN GEL (as described in Agri. Bio. Chemi., 48 (1), 227-228, 1984) is utilized so that the resultant meat products have a low calorific value with an increasing content of fibers in the meat product. The invention also relates to a method for making the processed meat products. The processed meat products used herein are intended to mean various meat products, including, for example, patties, terrines, meat loaves, sausage, shu-mai, dumplings stuffed with minced pork or gyoza, meat balls, meat buns and the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, ordinary processed meat products are made typically by a process which comprises the steps of chopping or cutting a meat into fine pieces by a suitable means, adding, if necessary, additives such as fine pieces of vegetables, fats, starch and the like to the meat pieces, further adding seasonings and spices to the mixture, and subjecting the resultant mixture, as it is or after further addition of other materials, to a heat treatment such as boiling, baking, steaming or smoking. Most known meat products have been served chiefly as highly calorific and high protein foods.
Because of the high calorific value and the high lipid and protein content with a small content of fibers, the processed meat products are considered to be one of main causes for diseases of adult people accompanied by the excess intake of calorific energy and the shortage of fibers. This is the serious problem involved in the diet of the present day. Accordingly, there is a demand for foods which have a lower calorific value and reduced content of lipids and proteins with an increasing amount of fibers.
If it is intended to reduce the nutritive value of processed foods, the usual practice is to add a material whose nutritive power is far less than that of the processed food or is completely free of such nutritive power. For better results, the material to be added should be free of any nutritive power. Examples of the material may include not only konjac mannan gel, but also mushrooms, algae, tea leaves and the like. However, the materials other than the konjac mannan gel all have peculiar flavors and tastes, and are significantly different in physical properties from meats.
The mere addition of water to a processed meat food in larger amounts may result in a lower nutritive value, but the resultant food is a so-called "sloppy" food whose physical properties greatly vary with a lowering in quality of the food.
The konjac mannan gel has no nutritive value and is mainly composed of konjac gluco-mannan of hemicellulose, thus containing fibers which are important for the sake of health. However, meat products to which an ordinary konjac mannan gel has been added are not favorable and are rather objectionable because of the inherent properties of the konjac mannan gel. More particularly, the meat products containing the konjac mannan gel are generally hard or tough and brittle with an inherent odor of the konjac mannan gel which is not agreeable. Thus, such meat products are of little commercial value.